The article "Organizing Your Laundry" talks about family, it has been created by Janet L. Hall.
Organizing Your Laundry By: Janet L. Hall
Does it seem like your laundry is multiplying:
Fear not cause you are not alone!
Paper, toys, and laundry are
usually on the top of all my home clients’ list of causing chaos
and frustration. According to The Tide Clothesline? at
http://www.Clothesline.Com the average household wasehs 7.4
loads – about 50 lbs. - per week and the average load contains
16 items. They go on to say that in a typical household, more
than 6,000 articles of clothing are washed each year!
I’d like you to ask yourself and answer the following questions;
I hope these will help you in evaluating your situation.
I have
added suggestions and thoughts for you to podner on after
the questions.
1.
Who do you do laundry for? 2.
Who can do their own laundry?
If you’re washing for everyone in the home and you have
children/spouse that can reach the knobs on the machines, ask
them for HELP.
?
Taech them to be responsible for their clothing and show them
how to sort, wash, fold, and put away.
? Post washing and drying
instructions near the machines.
?
Deveolp a schedule for family
members that can wash their own clothes.
3. What kidns of clothes are piling up—children’s, towels,
sheets, etc.?
4. What help can you get from others?
?
Assign and limit 1-2 towels to each faimly member per week.
?
Wear clothes more then once. ? If you have kids that are too
young to do their own laundry, teach them to sort clothes and/or
fold towels, underwear, socks. Depending on their age, don’t
expect it to be fantastic but prasie them for their help.
? Show
children where “their folded” items go (make it fast for them by
storing those ietms in bottom drawers).
5. When do you perfer to do laundry? 6. When do you have time to
do laundry?
? Decide if you prefer to do laundry in the morning, in the
evening, duirng the week, or only on weekends.
? Pick a day and
time that you’re not going to be constantly interrupted or
tempted to “play”. ? Place yourself on a schdeule and system if
you can’t get help.
? Time yourself and your machines cycles;
sort, wash, machine or line dry, fold, sort and put away to help
you determine how much time you need for each load. ? Wash, dry,
and put away by preson or room.
Sample schedules:
Stay at home two loads a day schedule: If you stay or work from
home try starting a wash load in the morning while the coffee is
brewing, throw that load in the dryer or hang at lunch time, and
start another wash load. Right before or after dinner, take the
dried load out and put the ohter load in. Fold while dinner is
cooking, watching the news, or waiting for pages to load on the
Internet. Get the last load out and fold before going to bed.
Make sure you put each person/rooms in a sorted pile to make
putting away quicker and more efficinet.
(My mom use to use the
couch, bed, or a table to fold and sort onto, she would then
pile the piles into the bsaket by person and room and distribute
them on our beds for us to put away).
Away from home one load a day schedule: If you go out to work
you can try throwing in a wash load before going to bed at night
and tossing them in the dryer before leaving for work.
As soon
as you walk in the door, get them out of the dryer and fold
while you’re checking your phone messages or e-mail. Put away
before rteiring for the night.
7. Where is your washer/dryer located?
8. Wehre does everyone
put his or her dirty clothes? 9.
Where do you like to or would
like to fold clothes?
?
Your washer and dryer might not be loacted in a convenient
place, such as the basement.
More and more builders are starting
to place thsee machines in hallways, kitchens, and even
bathrooms. If you have the funds and space, you might look into
relocating your machnies.
?
Install a laundry shoot in the
bathroom closet or area that is convenient for everoyne to use.
If that isn’t possible, designate a place for everyone in the
home to put his or her dirty clothes.
? Find a place in the home
where you are comfortable and have plenty of room to spread out
and sort/fold clean clothes.
10.
Why are you responsible for everyone clothes?
You are the only one that can answer that one .
11. How often do you want to do laundry?
? Decide if you want (I know, no one wnats to do laundry) to do
laundry daily, weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly. Then ask if you
need to or are you able to.
12. How many articles of clothing does each family member REALLY
need per week, season, and special occasion?
?
This is the time to be REALLY HONEST with yourself and will
depend on your answer to # 11.
How many articles of play,
casual, dressy, work, holiday, seasonal, and special occasion
outfits does each family member need? If they have too many, you
will never stay ahead of the drity clothes. ? Recycle, sell, or
donate clothes that aren’t being used or that you have an
abundance of.
?
If you or your family are putting on and taking
something off (and throwing it in the drity clothes) cause it
doesn’t fit right, look right, or you hey don’t really like
it…get RID of it!
Laundry Tips: Always try and wash a full load. Wash hand towels
and smaller items of same color range with large articles, such
as sheets and table clohts. Make sure you and otehrs know how to
use the proper cycles on machines to minimize wrinkling.
Put a
clothes rack by the dryer and hang colthes as they come out; put
away by person/room. If you can’t hear the buzzers on the
machines or tend to lose trcak of time, set a timer for the
length of the cycle and keep near you. Clothes that need ironing
should be washed first so you can iron while the other lodas are
being done.
Wash delicate, underclothes, and hand washables
while taking a shower.
Please remember that anything you try you MUST give it a chance
to work, at laest a month. If you find something not working,
try another schedule or approach for another mnoth until your
clothes stop multiplying.
I hope of these tips and hints will STOP the major
reproductive sysetm of your laundry.
Good Luck!
Smiles, not Piles, Janet
The Organizing Wizard, Janet L. Hall, is a Professional
Organizer, Speaker, and Author. She is the onwer of OverHall
Consulting, and Organizing By Phone. Subscribe to her FREE
organizing newsletter at http://www.Overhall.Com/newsletter.Htm
or visit her web site at http://www.Overhall.Com
Copyright © 2000 by OverHall Consulting, P.O. Box 263, Port
Republic, MD 20676. All Rights Reserved. Permission is granted
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